Some will remember Eidfest for the food, others for the rides, the hot rods and the camels and yet others simply for the dulcet sound of the Adhaan resonating through the Showgrounds.
For me Eidfest was about experiencing a sense of spirituality, comfort and safety and a oneness with my fellow man. It was about taking strength from our ability as a community to work and live in harmony amongst ourselves and within the broader community.
Over the past few years we have seen in Australia Muslim communities increasingly become the focus of negative publicity and unwarranted attention, and our confidence in ourselves as a community progressively eroded under an onslaught of media derision and unrelenting bile. As a minority group, fractured even further along ethnic and ideological lines, we have found the daily burden of defending religion and culture and the actions of others resting heavily on our shoulders.
In this showgrounds sanctuary surrounded by familiar sights and sounds and friends, family and people usually only known through nodding acquaintances from the mosques, I could let my guard down, and allow any feelings of helplessness and isolation to dissipate as I drew comfort from the many friendly, smiling faces and from the realization that for once in Brisbane I was not alone on this island.
Click on images to enlarge
IFA Collection Drive
There was overwhelming support yesterday for this Islamic Females Association (IFA) initiative with streams of cars entering the Svoboda Park carpark in Kuraby and unloading bags full of clothes, books and toys earmarked for Somalia.
With Mohammed Janga being relegated to turning over the sausages and browning the onions (and a fine job he did of that, we may add) it was obvious that the young ladies were going to be in total control of the day's organization right from the start. (A sign of things to come in the near future, gentlemen?)
CCN congratulates the IFA on undertaking a very worthy cause. It warms the cockles of the heart just to think that there
will be at least one Somalian proudly walking the streets of Mogadishu with a prized medium-sized CresWalk2004 emblazoned T-shirt that its original owner finally gave up on trying to squeeze into.
A Recipe for Exotic Cooking
There have been several requests for copies of the recipes after the successful demonstrations at the Global Convenience Cooking Demo Stall at Eidfest2005.
There was Zaini Issadeen's Diced Chicken with Cashew Chinese style; Kassie Haye's Malaysian Vegetarian Noodles (Rice Noodles) and Ayam Lemak (Coconut Chicken Coriander); and many more.
The Triple C shop was very well supported at Eidfest and there was barely a moment for the core Crescents team of organizers to catch their breaths during the day.
However, the success of the stall would not have been possible without the help of the many people who came forward with assistance. They were:
Jams and Fazila Ismail
Dado, Jason and Todd from Bi-Rite for the loan of the Plasma TV
Imraan Hussain
Ross Strudwick and Chris Dellit of the John Paul College Parents Committee and Principal Stephen Paul of JPC
Sheikh Mabrouk of Continental Halal Meats; Reffik Dada of Kelly's Distributors; and ABD Poultry for their kind donations
Several anonymous donors
And last (but by no means least) the fantastic ladies in the community for their fabulous cakes and pastries:
Khatija Omar
Farida Omar
Shamila Goder
Rashida Limbada
Fayaza Omar
Zahra Omarjee
Shamima Nathie
Fatima Jangda
Farzana Hatia
Shaheda Khatree
Sarah Sabdia
Adila Chotia
Ruweida Saley
Yasmin Doola
Fouzia Moola
Zaheda Ismail
Parveen Surtie
Hamida Dada
Amina Paruk
Zaynee Issadeen
Raeesa Seedat
Rehana Moola
Safia Sacur
Jamila Solwa
Khairoon Karim
Zubeida Omar
Safia Casoojee
Abeda Khatree
Aysha Peer
The Crescents team extends its gratitude for all their help and support and apologize if they have left anyone out inadvertently.
All the profits for the day which amounted to $2000 will be donated to the South Asia Pakistani Earthquake appeal through Muslim Aid Australia.
TO THE LAND OF IMAM AL-BUKHARI (R.A.)
by Abulfadl Mohsin Ebrahim, Professor of Islamic Studies, School of Religion and Theology, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban
DID you know that some of the great Muslim scholars hailed from Uzbekhistan and in particular Imam al-Bukhari (r.a.)?
Prof. Ebrahim recounts his journey and experiences while attending the National Bioethics Congress in Tashkent in September this year.
His diary contains photographs and interesting snippets of information about the place. These are just some of the extracts from his notes which you can download in full from here:
"Interestingly, at least three of the participants touched upon the Islamic perspective on Bioethics. Dr Zamira Muhamedova’s paper was entitled “Islamic Bioethics: A Historical Perspective and Dr A.I. Kasymov spoke on “Sources of Bioethics in Adab al-Tabib and in Ibn Sina’s Canon of Medicine.” In my paper, which was simultaneously translated into Russian, I argued that two basic human rights, namely right to life and right not to be mutilated, should equally be extended to the unborn and substantiated my stance on the basis of the Qur’an, Ahadith and legal verdicts from the Schools of Islamic Jurisprudence."
"...the original Qur’an which was handwritten by Zayb Ibn Thabit (r.a.) as sanctioned by the third Khalifah, Sayyiduna `Uthman Ibn `Affan (r.a.), 20 years after the demise of our beloved Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.s.), was to be found in the city of Tashkent in
Tilli-Shaykh Masjid/Library."
"The site where Imam al-Bukhari (r.a.) is buried is truly impressive. One enters through a huge gate and it is there that one has to pay an entrance fee that includes a guided tour. There is also a small shop selling some souvenirs and local crafts. Then one immediately steps into a courtyard laden with lavish lawns, tall trees and colourful flowers and on the left is the ablution area and Masjid."
"The door to his maqbarah is under lock and key ....... (and) is opened only on the two `Ids when thousands of people visit it to pay their respects to this great muhaddith (r.a.), whose Hadith compilation, i.e. Al-Jami` al-Sahih is considered to be the most authentic of the Sihah Sittah (i.e. The Six Authentic Compilations of Hadith).".
Third from the right is Dr Zamira Muhamedova, Professor Malika S. Abdullahodzhaeva and next to her is Dr `Abd al-Fattah `Abd al-Salam
"I must confess that a Muslim visitor to Uzbekistan may find that most of the Muslims in that part of the world are not necessarily upholding the tenets of Islam, but I would like to draw the attention of the readers that we have to bear in mind that, under the rule of the Soviet Union, it was forbidden for Muslims to openly practice their faith."
"I am .... hopeful that within a decade or so, by the grace of Allah (SWT), Islam will be vibrant in that part of the world. This hope stems from the fact that when I asked the taxi driver who took me to Samarkand whether he was a Muslim, he instantaneously replied: “Al hamdu li Allah!” (Praise be to Allah."
A reliable CCN source informs us that Prof Ebrahim, whose specialty is the Islamic perspective on organ donation and transplants, will be coming over to Australia on a visit in December.
Ipswich Appeal
The Islamic Society of Ipswich will be in dire straits if they do not raise enough funds to secure their Mosque property by 30 December. You can read more about the predicament they are in by clicking here.
The CCN "Time to Turn that Frown Upside Down"
Mujibar was trying to get into Australia legally through Immigration.
The Officer said, "Mujibar, you have passed all the tests, except one.
Unless you pass it you cannot enter Australia."
Mujibar said, "Iam ready."
The officer said, "Make a sentence using the words Yellow, Pink and Green."
Mujibar thought for a few minutes and said, "Mister Officer, I am ready."
The Officer said, "Go ahead."
Mujibar said, "The telephone goes green, green, green, and I pink it up, and say, "Yellow, this is Mujibar.'"
Mujibar now works at a call centre near you.
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CCN Vacation Job Matchmakers
Several students have been having a hard time finding vacation jobs and have approached CCN about putting out a call on their behalf. If you have one to offer one of our school/university going youngsters please email
If you are one of the afore-mentioned students looking for part-time employment send us your details and we will forward them to prospective employers.
Please note ALL information supplied to CCN will be kept strictly confidential.
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Assalaamu-aleikum
A gent's ring has been lost during the Eidfest on Saturday. It was lost during the course of Zohr namaaz and could have been mislaid somewhere between the taps (where wudhu was performed) and the main tent) where Zohr was performed. The ring is gold and is horse-shoe shaped.
Jazakallah
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